2016World Junior Championships

Two Russian Withdrawals Help Marin Honda to Win Ladies Title

by Klaus Reinhold Kany

Photos by Robin Ritoss

(20 March 2016) The ladies
competition at Junior Worlds 2016 in Debrecen/Hungary had a good but
no outstanding level. 48 ladies were entered and 46 finally were
drawn, which is much more than the ISU tends to want. Therefore the
short program took seven hours, which might be a problem for some
members of the jury, because they have to be concentrated in each
second of any program. Next year the required technical minimum
points, which are only 20 for the short and 35 for the long program
this season, might be higher in order to reduce the number of
participants. The ladies make less mistakes than the men because
their program are less risky. Nobody tried a triple axel, nor any
quad jump, and most of the better half have no problem with all
other triple jumps.

The competition ended with a surprise. There was no Russian sweep at all
because two of the three Russian girls had to withdraw. 15-year-old
Polina Tsurskaja, who had been first at the ISU Junior Final and
first at Russian Junior Nationals, was the favorite for this
competition. But during the on-ice morning practice before the short
program she sprained her ankle:Even the experienced Russian team
doctor Viktor Anikanov, who had been called back from retirement
after the doping disaster of his successor in Bratislava, could not
help. Her team mate Maria Sotskova after the short program said: “I
know that Polina’s foot already hurt when she came here. Then she
had a bad fall this morning in practice. It is sad that she had to
withdraw from this event.”

During the
off-ice warm-up one hour before the free program, the Russian team
had bad luck a second time. Alisa Fedichkina, who had been fourth in
the ISU Junior Final, tore an ankle ligament while jumping around a
bit. Her team member Maria Sotskova had to explain: “Alisa fell in
the warm up in the gym right in front of my eyes and she couldn’t
get up. They carried her to the medical room. I was worried for her
and I didn’t know whether she would be able to skate or not.”

The day before Fedichkina had
been first in a very good short program, earning 66.11 points after
performing a combination of triple lutz and triple toe loop and the
other required elements, including a world-class layback spin which
was rewarded with three GOEs of +3 and six +2. She said: “I’m
pleased with my performance. I wanted to skate clean and that’s what
I did. I was able to cope with my nerves and I’m happy with my
result. It is really a shame that Polina had to withdraw, because
she is actually the strongest of the juniors.” One day later she had
to give up as well.

So Sotskova
was the only Russian lady to finish the competition. According to
the rules, the two withdrawals did not cost Russia any spot for next
year’s Junior Worlds. Tsurskaya was the third ranked skater who did
not count anyway. Fedichkina had finished her short program in the
top ten and had to withdraw for medical reasons. This meant that her
placement was not relevant either and only Sotskova’s second place
counted. If a country has only one skater in a competition and this
skater is first or second, the country gets three spots in the
following year.

Sotskova, who had won silver at the ISU Junior Final, was third in Debrecen in a
good short program to music of “Black Magic Woman” by Santana (which
might be a bit strange for a 15-year-old white girl) with 64.78
points. Her combination of triple lutz and triple toe loop was
excellent, the other elements good as well, only one spin got only a
level 2. In the long program, all her seven triple jumps were clean,
only her second double axel near the end was under-rotated . Her
components were around 7.5. This was enough to finished second
overall with 188.72 points.

She commented: “Coming here I was not in a bad form, you can even say I was well
prepared and ready for this event. When I learned that Alisa has to
withdraw today I realized that I’m the only Russian left in the
competition and that I have to skate for my country. I’ll get home
on Monday evening and on Tuesday we’ll leave for the Spartakiade (a
national competition) in Saransk. After that I think I’ll do new
programs and then I want to go to the USA for summer training. I
started well into the season and in my first Junior Grand Prix I had
my best performance so far. Then my shape went down a bit, but I
pulled myself together for Nationals and skated well. The hardest
competition were the Youth Olympic Games. It was difficult to focus.
I am certainly capable of winning, but it did not happen this time.”

The winner in Debrecen earned 192.98 points and was Marin Honda from Osaka in
Japan who had been third at the Junior Final in Barcelona three
months ago. In the flawless and fluent short program to the Asian
music of “Spring Sonata Number 5”, the student of Mie Hamada had
exactly the same 66.11 points as the winner Fedichkina. But she was
only second because the Russian girl had more technical points which
prevail in the short program. Honda’s combination of triple loop and
triple toe loop was excellent, the required triple flip good and four
elements had a level 4. In the free program, which included the
usual seven triple jumps, there was no mistake either.

She said: “I was aiming at the podium. After the short program I felt stronger
about making the podium. Junior Worlds is the most important
competition for us juniors and we work very hard for it. I think
overwork caused the different injuries. I aim at the World Juniors
next year and I’ll concentrate to make it happen.”

The second Japanese skater Wakaba Higuchi (JPN) from Tokyo won the bronze medal
with 183.73 points. In the short program to a Mambo phantasy, she
fell on the triple toe loop after the triple Lutz of her combination
because she did not land it backwards. The other elements were good.
In a faultless free program which included seven triple jumps, she
could move up from fifth to third place. Instead of the planned
combination of triple Lutz and triple loop, she did triple lutz and
triple toe loop.

She commented: “Before the competition my condition was good. Unfortunately I
missed an element in the short program and I was very disappointed.
I had some concerns in the free skating about the triple Lutz-triple
loop thing, but I think I did a good job. This was my last junior
event. Next season I want to try the senior level.”

The third Japanese skater Yuna Shiraiwa, who is also coached by Mie Hamada,
finished fourth with 171.59 points and underlined the general high
level of female skating in Japan. In her short program she could add
only a overturned double toe loop instead of a planned triple one
after the triple lutz, but everything else was o.k. Her free program
was almost faultless with seven triple jumps, only the second triple
lutz was under-rotated .

Elizabet Tursynbaeva from Kasakhstan, who trains with Brian Orser in Toronto,
finished fifth, winning 170.83 points. After a fall on the triple
lutz she could not add the planned triple toe loop of her
combination. Next was a spin during which her nose started bleeding.
She stopped, looked to Orser and skated to the Polish referee Aniela
Hebel-Szmak to ask for a break of two minutes to fix this problem.
The rink board doctors put a piece of a paper handkerchief into her
nose and therefore she could continue without problems, performing
the remaining five elements in good quality.

Later Orser said that
neither he nor the skater knew the rule that she got a deduction of
five points for this interruption. This rule was introduced a few
years ago in order to discourage skaters with a bad physical
condition to be allowed to cheat and skate their program in two
parts. Therefore Tursynbaeva was only 14th in the short
program.

With the fourth best free program and seven triple jumps
she still could move up to fifth place overall. Without this
deduction she would have been fourth. Later she said if the nose
bleeding had happened again she would have continued nevertheless
because she did not want to risk another deduction of five points.
But in the free she had no problems.

Tyler Pierce of Riverside, California, surprising fifth at U.S Nationals in
January, had skated excellently and in a very energetic style at the
Bavarian Open in Germany in February. But in Debrecen she was not
quite as strong again and finished sixth with 161.29 points. After a
good triple toe loop - triple toe loop combination in the short to
“Voices from the Forest” by Paul Spaeth she fell on the triple flip
which was under-rotated . The other elements were good, the
combination spin even excellent. In the free, she interpreted the
famous “Danse Macabre” by Camille Saint-Saens. Four triple jumps
were clean, but two under-rotated and she doubled a toe loop which was
planned triple.

The second American Bradie Tennell of Buffalo Grove, Illinois, sixth at
U.S.Nationals in seniors, ended up eleventh, earning 147.52 points.
After the short program she had been in a surprising fourth position
in spite of a fall on the double axel. But her combination of triple
lutz and triple toe loop was very good, her spins and steps (all
level 4) as well. But in the free program, she fell three times, had
only three clean triples and could not keep her excellent position.